College was some of the best times of my life. First of all, don't pick a major that doesn't pay well. You'll end up poor AND in debt. STEM majors are a good choice. Second, look at at fields to see what the job growth is for the next few years and pick something smart. And very importantly, whether you are left or right leaning, BE SURE, to question all opinions fed to you with an objective mind and come to your own conclusions. A lot of group thinking going on these days so avoid "left" or "right" talking points like the plague.

College life is literally what you want to make out of it. There is literally something for everyone at college, that could be in a form of a club, a sport, or even a social event. You pick your classes and when you take them. You get to decide what you do after class and what you wanna do for your leisure time. You pick when you want to study and when you want to sleep. ( Just kidding haven't slept in days send help )

Professors aren't your ordinary High School teachers don't expect them to hold your hands and guide you through everything. You need to learn to be self motivated because unlike High School failing a class in college is a lot more detrimental because of that fact that you're paying for the class and it might delay your graduation.

In the end college is the best time to socialize and network. I would recommend to take the time and expand your social circle and meet new people, those connections you make may be very helpful down the road.

XxNaruTheNarcissistxXwrote:And very importantly, whether you are left or right leaning, BE SURE, to question all opinions fed to you with an objective mind and come to your own conclusions. A lot of group thinking going on these days so avoid "left" or "right" talking points like the plague.

And even so, if you do find an ideal or an old issue to question...don't be a jerk: College campuses have become the new audition gong-show of crazy angry-SJW causes, from newly independent students, free from their parents and hometowns, trying to assert their New Identity in the World by attacking some sacred-cow, and/or "changing the world" by ridding it from the planet.
(And it's rarely the straight white male students doing it...)

The best approach is to say "Question authority", but the smart approach is, "But learn how to be comfortable if you discover the answer sometimes happens to be 'yes'."
The laws of probability dictate, Everyone Else isn't going to be wrong ALL the time...

XxNaruTheNarcissistxXwrote:And very importantly, whether you are left or right leaning, BE SURE, to question all opinions fed to you with an objective mind and come to your own conclusions. A lot of group thinking going on these days so avoid "left" or "right" talking points like the plague.

don't be a jerk

Highly relevant. Express your opinions in a civil manner and allow the other party to speak (looking at you SJWs).

That being said, it'll be hard. If you can, load yourself up with classes a little more than usual earlier on when you've still got easy classes, so (hopefully!) you can take it a little easier a few years down the line. That's one thing I wish I'd done.

If it's an option, go to a small school. Big schools have fun name recognition I guess, but employers don't give a shit where you went as long as you can do your job. ESPECIALLY in the realm of Computer Science. And going to a smaller school means smaller classes which means your professor -- the expert in the room -- can actually help you with things. That and the college will feel more like a community when there's just a few thousand students, and that's something I really loved at my school.

Do some leadership! It looks good on your resume, it's fun, and it's a great way to meet people and make friends. Student government, club leadership, etc... It's good stuff, but it'll definitely add a few hours of work to your week.

Good luck living in a stinky shoebox. I have no advice for you about dorms. I transferred in and got to live in an on-campus house straight-away, so I skipped that nonsense.

Find your school's nerd club (there's gotta be one) and at least give them your school email or otherwise join their mailing list or whatever so you can see what's going on, even if you can't make it.

And finally... don't be a jerk.

Also it will help if you can magically transform into an extrovert but that's a level 100 spell so I understand if you can't.

Get psychologically ready for failing, it's, unfortunately, a very likely ocurrance. You're gonna meet a lot of nice people, so make friends with them, people in college are much better than in highschool. Remember the times you used to sleep, because that's not happening anymore.

If you're excited about going to college then try hard, and I mean really hard, to maintain that enthusiasm for at least the first two semesters. Not saying that like it's some sort of challenge or anything, but I know that I was never excited about college for any reason other than I had enough scholarships to pay my way through and that a degree means more money. Nothing else about college interested me other than the end goal and I learned in a hard way that you have to be willing to do all of it. I'm in my last year of college and everything else outside of classes stresses me out so much that I actually wish I hadn't gone. I say if you're only going for a degree, choose very carefully where you go

Just be very careful to always remember that college isn't really real adult life. You're there to gain knowledge and have your beliefs challenged, and your working knowledge ought to be based on how the world really is.

In other words, don't get too liberal. College is soft. The real world is cold and hard.

It can be difficult, just don't waste your time or money the first few semesters. I made that mistake and threw a lot out the window.Stay happy, dedicated, and focused. The key to college is to stay motivated. If you lose that, it feels like you lose it all. Surround yourself with support and good people. You'll do great! c: